Moffat granted relief on farm

Mashudu Netsianda Senior Court Reporter
THE Bulawayo High Court has granted Insiza white commercial farmer, Bruce Moffat, who is grandson to a former Rhodesian Prime Minister, a provisional order to remain at his Shangani farm pending the finalisation of his court application.

Justice Martin Makonese’s ruling set aside an earlier ruling by Magistrate Singandu Jele of the Small Claims Court and follows an urgent chamber application filed by Moffat at the Bulawayo High Court challenging his eviction from the farm in Shangani.

Moffat, grandson to Howard Unwin Moffat, Southern Rhodesia’s second premier from 1927 to 1933, is locked in a farm ownership wrangle with a Bulawayo woman, Sibongile Shava.

He lost the case in March at the Small Claims Court and was subsequently ordered to vacate Oaklands Farm by Jele.

Moffat, through his lawyers, Webb, Low and Barry, then took his case to the High Court seeking a provisional order to block the Messenger of Court from executing the Small Claims order pending a review of the case.

“The execution of the court order issued by the Small Claims Court in case number SCC 73/15 on March 10, 2015, be and hereby stayed pending finalisation of the court application for review under the cover of case number HC 698/15,” ruled Justice Makonese.

Shava has 10 days to file a notice of opposition to the provisional order. The respondent is a widow of Colleen Shava who was the late Vice-President Joshua Mqabuko Nkomo’s driver.

According to the court papers, Shava, Lands and Rural Resettlement minister, Douglas Mombeshora and the Messenger of Court were cited as respondents.

“This is an urgent chamber application for stay of execution of the decision of magistrate Singandu Jele, in Case number SCC 73/15, pending the finalisation of an application for review filed under cover of Case Number HC698/15,” said Moffat in his founding affidavit.

Moffat argued that despite the acquisition of his 2,100 hectares farm by the government in 2003, he has been given permission to retain 788 hectares of Subdivision 2 of Oaklands Farm. The farm was subdivided into three sections.

“As a result of the recommendation, representatives of the Ministry of Lands and Rural Resettlement approached me and advised me that I had been allocated the property known as Subdivision 2 of Oaklands Farm measuring 788 hectares. I remained in peaceful occupation of Subdivision 2 of Oaklands Farm since 2003 until December 2014 when Shava secured a court order from the Small Claims court to evict me,” said Moffat.

In his ruling Jele concluded that the land acquired by the State ceases to have value in terms of the Agricultural Land Settlement Act. Jele said that Moffat’s letter could not supersede Shava’s offer letter, which was signed by the Minister of Lands and Rural Resettlement.

Moffat argued that the Small Claims had no jurisdiction to handle the dispute because of the value of the land. According to the Small Claims Court Act, the court cannot handle cases involving money or property whose value is in excess of $10,000.

“I’m advised that this finding (by Jele) is bad at law. I therefore made an application for an order setting aside the Small Claims court order. I’ve a real apprehension that I’ll be evicted from the farm before the application for review is finalised, a process which I believe may take a long time,” he said.

“My lawyer advised me that I’ve strong prospects of success in the review application as the value of the 788 hectares farm is far higher than $250,” said Moffat.

He said Shava approached him in the company of the police on March 13 and ordered him to vacate the farm. Moffat was dragged to court by Shava for refusing to vacate Oaklands Farm which was acquired by the government and sub-divided into three sections to accommodate newly resettled farmers.

Shava said she was allocated Subdivision 2 of the farm, but Moffat disputed her ownership of the property. He argued that he was in possession of a recommendation letter issued by officials from the lands office in Filabusi authorising him to retain the farm.

Shava said Moffat refused to recognise her offer letter from the Ministry of Lands and Rural Resettlement. Oakland Farm has been at the centre of controversy since 2013 when Shava was allocated the land by the Ministry of Lands and Rural Resettlement.

She was subsequently given her offer letter on June 6, 2014.